Where Freedom Lies
by Voraline
Summary: Levi is the lowest of the low. Owned by the 'nobility' of the underground Hotel Sina, he spends his days waiting for a chance to take back what was stolen from him. Erwin Smith is the mysterious new leader of one of the most prominent mafia groups affiliated with Hotel Sina's nobility. Will their meeting bring about disaster or salvation? Eruri, Mafia AU, Yaoi, Erwin x Levi


Thanks for reading this! This is the result of me trying to study for my exams and failing. I've been wanting to do a mafia boss Erwin for a while now. Feedback is much appreciated.

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Chapter 1: Point Blank

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*Sina hotel, underground gambling area's restaurant*

'Watch where you're going, you fucking rat!' The man was holding his collar and spatting in his face.

Levi did not answer, instead he gritted his teeth, trying to stop himself from punching and potentially killing the fat man in front of him. He hated working there. He hated the disgusting men and women who usually came in the casino and most of all he hated being looked down on, which was something that every patron of the Sina hotel did to him. They were all either old, fat and sweaty old men with too much time and money on their hands or young, stupid looking heirs who thought they owned the world simply because they had been born to privilege. The women were no better, most of them just tools to their powerful spouses or scantly cladded, on the prowl, trying to prey on potential partners to sustain them in the future.

He hated that world and everything it stood for, it was fake, gluttonous and reeked of arrogance, yet he was a slave to it. There was no way for him to pay off his ridiculous amount of debt and thus he ended up belonging to the man who owned the Sina Hotel. He was his property, no different than the hotel or the casino underneath it.

'Mr. Balto! There's no need for you to soil your hands touching such filth. He'll bring you another glass of vine immediately!' said Isabel. She, like Levi, was working there. She also belonged to Rod Reiss, the owner of Sina Hotel, though her job was harder than Levi's. She was there to please the guests, to stick close to their sweaty bodies and smile at them while they put their disgusting hands all over her. Levi felt sick to the stomach seeing Isabel's hand on the man's arm and his eyes moving between her long legs and her deep cleavage.

'Well, I suppose there's no reason to expect better of a gutter rat like him. Of course, you should also know your place.' He said looking at her.

'But of course, Mr. Balto! I am here only to please you.' She smiled, dragging him away. As she left she shot one last apologetic look at Levi.

When they were out of sight Levi finally moved, carefully and skillfully picking up the broken glass from the floor and wiping the expensive wine away in a heartbeat. If there was one thing he hated more than the rich, it was dirt soiling anything in his surroundings. Cleaning it gave him peace. If he couldn't wipe his hands off that dirty world, he could at least clean _something_. He could, of course, decide to go on a rampage at any moment and kill at least some of them, but that wouldn't have solved anything. No matter how strong he was, eventually they would have just shot him in his sleep or something to that effect. He had no allies to rely on and his enemies were all piled up, waiting for him to make one tiny mistake. To be honest, he wasn't sure why he was still alive, but somehow, something kept them from ever laying a hand on him. As long as he obediently served them.

He sighed and stood up taking the broken pieces of the bottle to be thrown away. He had started to think about unnecessary stuff again. Thinking would do him no good, not at that moment. It wasn't that he planned on serving those filthy pigs for his entire life, but he wasn't prepared to recklessly throw it away either. He was waiting for an opportunity, a chance, anything that would mean he had the slimmest odds of taking down the people who had wronged him the most. Of course, if it came down to it and he was sure there was no better way, he'd go on a suicide mission and kill whoever he could, but for now he still had some patience. There had to be a way.

'Levi! Move your ass in here!' an angry voice shouted from beyond the staff room.

He quickly threw the trash and hurried down the staff corridors. The hallways and rooms that the staff used to get around the hotel contrasted strongly with everything else there. The were narrow, poorly illuminated and damp, walls that no one had bothered to ever paint littered with cracks and a suffocating air. It wasn't that the management couldn't afford to provide a better environment for its staff, they simply chose to let them work in those conditions. They needed to always be reminded of their place. They weren't important, their lives weren't worth a second thought and they were all expendable. Trash among trash, that's what all the workers of the Sina hotel were. If anything, they should have been thankful for being allowed to gaze upon the greatness of the hotel's guests.

The staff room had no door separating it from the corridor leading to the trashcans outside so Levi could immediately see that many others were gathered there already. He rushed and joined the line of workers, another pale, tired and hateful face to their ranks.

Djel was already there, instructing some of them to do something Levi couldn't hear. It was only on rare occasions that he ever came down to the staff rooms. He wasn't exactly a street rat like the rest of them, but no one would have mistaken him for nobility, although he sure would have liked that. He was simply someone slightly more fortunate than the rest of them, yet just as expendable. He sucked up to the nobility, lying to himself that he too possessed power and taking great pleasure in treating the workers like trash. He rarely saw them but when he was forced to come down there and pass down instructions to them his face was contorted in a disgusted expression, almost as if they were all carrying a deadly disease.

'Levi, next time you take so long to respond to the roll call we'll make sure you have a good reason to move so slow.'

Levi's fists reflexively clenched. _Don't lose it. Not here. Not because of this piece of trash._ He took a deep breath to calm himself and nodded his head.

'Now, I don't want to spend more time here than I need to. I trust I don't need to lecture you trash any more on what your places are so let's get down to it.' He paused for a second and looked around the room. 'Where's that Isabell whore and Jean?' his eyes were filled with rage and something else. Excitement. They were not here, so he was free to punish them.

'Isabell is tending to Lord Balto' Levi spoke quickly 'sir' he added in disgust.

'And Jean?' his rage seemed to grow. Everyone knew he took a particular interest in tormenting Isabell, yet she rarely made mistakes. This would have been a rare chance for him to dig his claws into her.

No one seemed to know where Jean was, which at least gave Djel some satisfaction. He would take care of him later.

'Well, anyway. We are going to have a very important meeting taking place tonight. We'll need most of the servers in the great hall and you will stay there until ordered otherwise. The casino will be closed and all guests that are not partaking in the meeting should be escorted out or to their rooms. All members attending the meeting will have a red pin like this.' he said holding up a small, burgundy square that looked like a diamond. 'Anyone not wearing this should be escorted to their rooms immediately.'

He then pointed to a few of them which all took a step forward. All of them women, although not the most sought after ones. Levi knew what that meant. If the guests were displeased with having to spend the night confined to their rooms, at least offer them something to keep them from being bored. At the same time, they needed the best women for whatever important meeting they had, so the guests would have to be satisfied with whatever could be spared.

'You will stay in the common lounge, make sure you tend to all guests that request you. Your shift lasts until told otherwise and if you have multiple clients requesting you at once I trust that you will handle it _professionally_. If everything is clear then move already. There's no time to waste.'

He started walking towards the closed door that separated the staff room from the corridor leading into the casino and then stopped. He names a few of the men to attend the common lounge together with the women. After all, not all guests wanted a woman. A slight overlook on his part.

'Levi. You stay in the lounge as well.'

'What?' Levi growled, his voice low and threatening. He was not even once asked to offer any other services than serving beverages, cleaning and such. Part of his contract he assumed and he was also sure no one would be stupid enough to be confined to a room with him. Right moment or not, if they asked him to whore himself, he'd kill whoever he could right then and there.

Djel turned to face him, a slight caution present in his movements.

'You'll be there in case anything goes south. You take out trash and serve beverages. Nothing else.' The way he said the word trash made Levi understand that this meeting may not go without attempts at interruption. He nodded and made his way to the lounge.

* * *

The night was long and unbearable, but somehow Levi felt calm. The usually loud casino was quiet, there was no noise seeping through the thin walls, scratching at his ears constantly. For the first night in years he could hear his footsteps on the wooden floors. No fake laughter, no leering looks, no mass of bodies filling every inch of the common lounge and the hallways. The air still reeked of perfume and alcohol, but at least the sound was for once unpolluted. He opened the windows of the lounge and enjoyed the cool breeze coming from the dark night outside. The lounge was empty, all other workers requested by someone or another and only he remained. He wondered absently what the meeting was about. Was the Reiss family there? Could he sneak in and kill them all? He sighed. He already knew the answer.

He twitched as he heard the lounge door slowly swing open. He turned around, expecting to see one of the workers returning from a client. Instead he was greeted with a sight that instantly put him on edge. Blonde hair, neatly parted to the side, blue eyes wondering lazily around the room. The man who entered was clearly a guest. He was wearing all black clothes, except for his dark green coat which hung carelessly from one of his shoulders. No pin. He wasn't supposed to be there.

'Sir' Levi said stepping out from the shadows of the balcony. 'You are not allowed to be here. Please tell me your room number, I will personally escort you back.' Levi quickly moved to his side, gesturing with his hand toward the door that lead to the rooms.

The man did not budge, instead he eyed Levi with a curious look.

'Sir, if you please.' Levi tried again. He was supposed to try nicely at first, then maybe resort to violence. If this guy thought he was above the rules of the hotel, he was a fool. Definitely some rich master who grew up to think he was owed the world. Levi felt his pulse rising.

He gestured again, looking up to the man. His eyes suddenly blinked as if the man was somehow awakening from an afternoon nap.

'I'm sorry, I was just here to enjoy some silence.' He smiled with a cunning expression and started walking towards the balcony. 'If you don't mind, I think I'll stay.' His back was carelessly turned to Levi, ignoring all of his warnings.

Well, if that was how he wanted it, Levi would do it that way. No one could accuse him of not trying. He quickly moved behind the man, grabbing his arm and squeezing it harshly.

'Sir, I think you don't understand. This is not a request. Members who are not part of the meeting happening at the moment may not freely move around the premises. I'll repeat. This is not a request.'

The man turned his eyes to him again, boredom clear in his look.

'I'm a guest attending the meeting, so I assume there's no problem then. Correct?'

Levi felt his anger rising. Dealing with this guy was not exactly at the top of his want-to-do-tonight list. He had no pin and no man would have been stupid enough to leave a meeting of such proportions. Levi couldn't say for sure what was happening there, but he knew people would kill to attend. No one would simply walk out for a breath of fresh air.

'Sir, could you provide some proof that you are attending the meeting?' Although Levi was sure he was lying, some caution couldn't hurt.

'Proof?' the man looked puzzled for a second. 'Oh.' He sighed with a realization apparent on his face. He reached his free hand into his pocked.

Levi tensed, expecting a gun or whatever they used those days, but what came out of the pocket was a small, red, glistering pin. His eyes widened. This man was in fact a guest attending the meeting. And here he was. Taking a breath of fresh air?! And he took his pin down? Levi looked at him with blind confusion.

_Is he crazy? They could be planning to kill him in there right this instant. What is this idiot doing here?_

'You wanted to see this, right?' the man smiled a tired ad understanding smile. 'It's a pain to wear something this ugly, so I took it off, that's all.'

_He just… took it off? _Levi's almost wanted to laugh. This had to be a bad joke. _Wait, why do I care? This guy can do whatever the fuck he wants. If they kill him, all the better. One less piece of trash to stand at the top._

He released the man's arm and took a step back.

'I am sorry about the rough handling, sir. Please enjoy your evening and if there is anything we can do to make it more pleasant, do not hesitate to ask.' He mechanically chanted the line that had been hammered into him so many times before.

A short chuckle came from the man in front of him.

'I'll be sure to do so.' He said and turned his back to Levi. With that he walked outside on the balcony and was out of Levi's sight.

Levi decided that since a guest was nearby, the best thing for him to do was to stand near the door, looking professional if anything. He had been standing there for half an hour, enjoying the silence. The presence of the man on the balcony did not soil the pleasantness of that evening as much as Levi had expected. The man was silent and out of view. His peace was short lived however, when through the door came one of the female workers, bleeding and crying. She couldn't exactly talk in sentences, but Levi got the gist of the situation quickly enough. He rushed through the door, taking her with him to clean her wounds and take care of the problems that seemed to have aroused.

When he returned to the common lounge, tired, dirty and with renewed disgust for the guests of the hotel, the man was gone.

* * *

Levi expected to get no sleep that night, yet somehow, he woke up. The light from outside shone in his eyes and he felt strangely lightheaded. He did not remember going to sleep, so why was he waking up? He did not remember those windows, those expensive curtains, so why was he seeing them?

He looked around the room and finally saw something he remembered. The blonde hair, the blue eyes. He was sitting on a chair in the corner of the room reading something intently. Levi tried getting up, but it was harder than ever. His body was weak, his head was spinning and he felt a strong urge to throw up despite not having eaten in at least a day. He was laying on a couch, next to a wooden table. In that man's room. All of his clothes were still on, but the realization seeped in suddenly and he forced himself up. He knew what was supposed to come next.

'What the fuck am I doing here?'

The man lifted his eyes from his papers, eying him with a calm demeanor.

'Calm down, Levi.'

'Why am I here?' he asked again, each word coming out as a single breath. He clenched his fists repeatedly. This was it. This was how he lost it. He was going to kill this piece of shit and then they would mark him as a target. He'd kill whoever else came after him and eventually he'd die in his sleep. This was it. This was his end. This blue eyed piece of trash was going to be the end of him.

'You seem to be very angry, but what can you do in that state?' he said, standing up and neatly placing the papers from his hand to the table.

He took a few slow steps towards Levi and suddenly he was right in front of him, towering over him. Levi was short by nature, but this man was uncommonly tall. Levi was forced to look up to him and he hated it. Not only did these people look down on his because of their status, they could also physically do it. It was as if nature itself decided to be cruel and give Levi a reminder of where he belonged in the form of his own height.

He lifted his fists instinctively, but he felt weak and slow. His arms moved sluggishly and he felt as if he was making his way through water.

'Oh?' the man lifted his eyebrows with a curious appreciation. 'You're already moving around so much. Impressive. I was expecting you to be out of it for at least a few more hours. I've never seen this before.' He said, a smile on his face. He looked like a predator eyeing its prey.

'Fuck you' Levi spat and moved his fist towards his face.

Too slow. A hand grabbed him before he could dislocate the man's grin straight from the jaw. Levi's anger swelled up in his chest. He tried again with his other arm, but the result did not change. He had no force, his speed was gone. He struggled to get out of the man's grip but that was also useless.

He felt the man pushing him back until he hit the bed behind him. No. No no no. That wasn't happening. It couldn't happen. It wasn't happening.

'Look' Levi started 'If you're gay or whatever, there's plenty of better people here to satisfy you'.

Here he was. Bargaining. What were the stages of loss again? Anger? Denial? Something? He was sure it ended in acceptance but he sure as hell wasn't going to accept the loss of his remaining pride.

'So you'd sell your friends to escape this? Is your pride that important?' the man said, mockingly.

It must have been nice to never have to make painful choices. To never have to throw away other people to protect your life. It must have been nice, Levi thought, and his anger grew stronger. What did this man know about him and the sacrifices he had had to make? What did he know of this hell hole that he thought he could talk like that to him?

'Fuck you! You think you can talk like that because you were born lucky, you make me sick. Trash like you can never understand' Levi spat, defeated.

'Hm? I never said I didn't understand, Levi. In fact, that's just what I'm looking for. I need men who are able to throw away everything for one reason.' His grip on Levi's hands softened.

'What nonsense are you sprouting you piece of shit?'

'I guess I may as well tell you, now that I've made up my mind. You're what I need.' He let go of Levi's hands and lifted his arms above his head in a gesture of peace. 'Sadly, I didn't bring you here because I'm looking to release any pent up frustration. I'm not gay and I won't lay a hand on you that way.'

'Ha?' Levi muttered incredulously.

The man smiled, the same cunning smile from the night before. He looked as if he had seen right through Levi and was sure of the outcome of this conversation already.

'My name is Erwin Smith. Levi, will you make a deal with me?'

This was it. His opportunity.


End file.
